NASCAR Sprint Cup Series press releases

Stewart & Yeley Combine for Top-20 at Daytona
Home Depot Driver Relived on Lap 72 Due to Illness

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- Tony Stewart and J.J. Yeley co-drove the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) to a 20^th-place finish in Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

Stewart, who felt ill before the start of the race, visited the infield care center and received a bag of Intravenous fluids before the 6 p.m. driver’s meeting, then two more after the driver’s meeting.

The two-time Sprint Cup champion started the race in 17^th and drove into the top-10 by just the fourth lap. He stayed within the top-10 for much of the first part of the race before telling crew chief Greg Zipadelli on lap 71 that he would need to be relieved.

Knowing Stewart wasn’t feeling well prior to the race, the No. 20 team made arrangements with Yeley to be on stand-by in the event Stewart could not finish the race. When that scenario played out, Yeley was ready to go, wearing a borrowed Home Depot firesuit, helmet, HANS device and gloves.

The Home Depot team executed the driver switch flawlessly, as well as changing four tires, gassing the car and making a track bar adjustment on lap 72 before sending Yeley back onto the 2.5-mile oval without losing a lap.

After restarting in 33^rd, Yeley took his time to get comfortable in the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota before beginning his march to the front.

By lap 122, Yeley was in 16^th and radioed to Zipadelli that the car was working well and that he would not require any changes during the final pit stop on lap 125.

After spending much of the final 37 laps of the event in the top-15, Yeley was 11^th on lap 156 when he informed Zipadelli that his car jumped loose on the bottom of the track and that it caused him to fall to 17^th. Just one lap later, Yeley was involved in a multi-car accident on the backstretch with Jimmie Johnson, Paul Menard and Dave Blaney. Yeley managed to avoid any serious damage, as the No. 20 machine just slid through the infield grass.

Yeley brought the car to pit road where The Home Depot team cleaned the grass and dirt from the front grill and checked the fenders before sending him out to finish the event, which was extended two laps past its scheduled 160-lap distance due to the accident on lap 157.

While in the top-20 on the final lap, Yeley was involved in yet another multi-car accident in turn one, but he managed to bring the car around to the finish to post a respectable 20^th-place result.

“This Home Depot team had a really, really good race car,” Yeley said. “The Toyota power was great. We ran in the top-10 two or three times pretty easy and we were passing cars. We were going to have a good finish. At the end, I chose to got to the bottom and the ‘55’ (Michael Waltrip) got up right behind me and got me loose.

“I really want to thank Jeff Moorad, Tom Garfinkel and DLP HDTV for allowing me to help out.”

“Very appreciative of him,” said Stewart of Yeley. “He wishes he could’ve been in his own car tonight, but I’m just thankful I got a friend that’s willing to do that for you and help out.”

Yeley drove for Stewart’s USAC team prior to coming to NASCAR in 2004 with JGR. After running a full-time NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule in 2004, Yeley advanced to the Sprint Cup Series as a teammate to Stewart in the No. 18 Interstate Batteries car. Yeley departed JGR after the 2007 season and now drives for the No. 96 team of Hall of Fame Racing. That outfit did not qualify for the Coke Zero 400, which made Yeley available to serve as Stewart’s relief driver.

“I was playing in the playground with my daughter and some of the guys from the Home Depot team were looking for me,” Yeley said. “Tony just was feeling really, really poorly. I figured after I was sitting up on the pit box after the race started that I’d never get in the race car because he was so fast. He drove up in the top-five and was just maintaining there. Then he got on the radio and said it was way, way too hot and he wasn’t going to make it. I only ran half the race and it was extremely hot in that race car.”

“I thought we were going to be able to (make it) for the first two runs, but once the car got a little bit loose and we had to start really sawing on the wheel, it’s like it zapped the energy out of me and I started making mistakes,” Stewart said. “It was a situation where I was trying to look out for everybody involved on the race team. I wasn’t doing us any favors by not being 100 percent. It was better to get out as early as we could versus sticking it out with 20 to go and expecting J.J. to get the thing back in the top-five. It’s one of those decisions you have to make early enough, and I knew I wasn’t feeling good and I wasn’t feeling any better and it was getting worse as we were going. Before the race, the nurse said she was going to buy us a couple of hours and we got three hours out of it. We still had to go out there and try.

“But it wasn’t worth putting those guys out on the track at risk and me making a mistake in front of them and creating a bad day for those guys. I was trying to be responsible and respectful to my race team and to the rest of the competitors out there.”

Stewart’s JGR teammates – Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin – finished first and 26^th, respectively. The win was Busch’s series-high sixth victory of the season, the 10^th of his career and his first at Daytona.

Busch remains the lead JGR driver in the championship point race, and he continues to be the series’ point leader, extending his lead to 182 markers over second-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hamlin and Stewart occupy the seventh and 12^th slots, respectively. Hamlin maintained his position, while Stewart dropped three spots. Hamlin is 446 points behind Busch, while Stewart sits 541 points arrears Busch.

Following Busch to the checkered flag under caution was Carl Edwards, while Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch and David Ragan rounded out the top-five. Robby Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Earnhardt, Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin comprised the remainder of the top-10.

There were 11 caution periods for 33 laps, with five drivers failing to finish the 162-lap race.

The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the July 12 LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill. The race begins at 8 p.m. EDT with live, high-definition coverage provided by TNT beginning with its pre-race show at 6:30 p.m. The race will also be broadcast live on SIRIUS Satellite Radio Channel 128.

TOYOTA NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Notes & Quotes
Daytona International Speedway

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- Kyle Busch registered his sixth victory of the season Saturday night in Daytona. Busch started ninth and led the race three times for a total of 31 laps. In addition to tonight's win, Busch has also crossed the finish line first at Atlanta, Talladega, Darlington, Dover and Sonoma, Calif. Camry drivers have now recorded seven NSCS wins this season. Tony Stewart, who had flu-like symptoms that forced him from the race, and substitute driver J.J. Yeley finished 20th in the No. 20 Home Depot Camry.

Other Toyota drivers in the field included Brian Vickers (11th), Dave Blaney (19th), David Reutimann (21st), Michael McDowell (25th), Denny Hamlin (26th), Michael Waltrip (27th) and AJ Allmendinger (42nd). Camry drivers have earned 26 top-five finishes and 38 top-10 finishes in 2008. With his victory, Busch extended his lead in the unofficial NSCS championship point standings and holds a 182-point advantage over second-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. Other Camry drivers among the top-20 in the unofficial NSCS point standings include Hamlin (seventh), Stewart (12th) and Vickers (16th).

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 1st
Can you talk about winning tonight?
"Man, I can't believe that we're here right now. We didn't have the best car tonight but these guys never gave up and we never gave up out there on the race track. We just had to get up to the front and luckily we were leading there when it mattered the most when the caution came out. There was just a ton of wrecks behind us. I hate it for all of those guys in torn up equipment. I'm glad to have this Interstate Batteries Toyota upfront."

Can you go through the final laps after the restart?
"I've really got to thank the 17 (Matt Kenseth). He was with the 99 (Carl Edwards) there. The 99 (Carl Edwards) got tore out sliding down the back straightaway and the 17 (Matt Kenseth) ducked in behind us and the 2 (Kurt Edwards) got with the 99 (Carl Edwards). (Matt) Kenseth gave me a great push and we were able to be ahead when it mattered. Sometimes it doesn't quite workout with teammates. I know that from here in the past. The Hendrick boys really worked together real well tonight and I've got to thank Denny (Hamlin). He was trying to help me there when we got squirrely there in the back and luckily I saved it and man, I don't know what I did to do that but that was close."

What happened when your steering went on lap 82?
"It wasn't really the steering that went. When I got hit from Denny (Hamlin), and I pulled out of line to try to pass, the air pinned the nose and it just got me squirrely down the straightaway. And there was really no rear grip in the rear tires while I was going straight for whatever reason. So just had to slow it down and get it straight and road the apron there. Then I think when I rode the apron, Steve (Addington) mentioned it, that I must have peeled the tires pretty bad because they were so hot that when I got going for the next couple laps, it just felt like the steering wheel had a lot of play in it; but I think the tires were just so hot that they weren't reacting, they were just sliding on the surface of the race track. So just had to let them cool down a little bit and get everything back together can get back going."

Why are you so calm now after such a wild race tonight?
"It was pretty crazy, that for sure. In the beginning part of the race, our cars were skating around a lot; not as much at the end, but still skating around a little bit. And trying to get the handling right and had our mishap and had to go back through traffic, drove through traffic pretty well and kept a calm cool head. I tried to get up as far as I could and I knew there was a pit stop left to and we had to adjust the tires, and you just had to keep a cool head tonight. Fortunately, having a good car, that helps. And then of course, being able to have some good helpers out there. Matt Kenseth - I've really got to thank him for there at the end of the race. If it wasn't for him getting behind me there and pushing me; and my brother (Kurt Busch) got behind Carl (Edwards) there, and I knew the 17 (Matt Kenseth) was better than what the 2 (Kurt Busch) was. So I had better help than the 99 (Card Edwards), but still, the 17 (Matt Kenseth) was strong and helped us."

How gratifying was it to win this race, and how anxious were you during that time where you weren't sure?
"Well, it was close, I knew that, but when I did see the yellow light come on, I could barely see the nose on the 99 (Carl Edwards) car up my right front fender. So I was hoping that we were the winners and, you know, it ended up being that way. But I know how Carl (Edwards) feels, that's for sure. I was just trying to figure out everything that I was going to will on that last lap coming back to the front straightaway because I remember what happened last year and how I lost it there and was just going to plan on what I needed to do in order to get that 18 car to the stripe first. A lot of that thought was going on, actually, before that caution came out. Once that caution did come out and I saw I was leading I was just like, whew, I think we won but we weren't sure. Carl (Edwards) and I were running side-by-side for another lap just not knowing.

How does this team continue to rebound and win races?
"The first thing is it's me that has to stay a little bit calm and just try to get back into the rhythm of what was going on and try to figure out what was happening so it doesn't happen again. There were some moves I could have made probably later in race again that were pretty evasive that would have looked evasive but I just stayed in line because I knew if I would have tried something else again, I probably would have wrecked. I just made sure that I drove a smart race and finished it out and whatever came to us was going to come to us tonight. I figured actually I was probably going to finish second to the 24 (Jeff Gordon), but when stuff started happening behind us you've always got to be ready for that and always be ready for your next move."

What was going through your mind once you saw Jeff Gordon wreck?
"I knew it was the green-and-white checkered, and yeah, I did see the 24 (Jeff Gordon) go around. And I was kind of waiting for the caution and the caution never came. I just kept my foot in it, and I was like, all right I guess we are going to be racing. I think I remember the 42 (Juan Pablo Montoya) dumping the 07 (Clint Bowyer) here in February and I think the 42 got posted for aggressive driving or something like that. You know, if the 99 (Carl Edwards) had won the race, that was going to be a pretty crucial moment for NASCAR to try to decide on what they were going to do if they were going to make a penalty, but I doubt they were. I just kept my foot in it and tried to beat him and finish the race up front."

STEVE ADDINGTON, crew chief, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
How did it look atop the pit box tonight for you?
"It was nerve-wracking. You have to leave it to the spotter and to Kyle (Busch) to get through the traffic and all that stuff. You really can't see a whole lot of what's going on accept watching the monitor and just going off by what he's saying and try to make the right adjustments for him, and it all worked out. I thought we were in big trouble there with Denny (Hamlin) bumping him and then shoved him out of line there, but we recovered from it and he drove it back to the front."

J.D. GIBBS, team owner, Joe Gibbs Racing
How much does it mean to Joe Gibbs Racing to win at Daytona with the No. 18 car?
"This ones means a lot, for Interstate Batteries; and Norm Miller and the guys out of Dallas, they have been with us from day one, this is special for them. That's a big deal and a testament to Steve (Addington) and Kyle (Busch) and the team we have there and the fact that they are able to capitalize on opportunities. We had three good cars here, but Steve (Addington) and those guys did a good job of just capitalizing and getting that victory, so that's a blessing."

BRIAN VICKERS, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Finishing Position: 11th
Is there any consolation with a top-10 finish and an undamaged car after the race?
"That is definitely a consolation. It was a good points day -- a top-10, and the car's in one piece. It's better than a lot of people can say. It was definitely a wreckfest. It was a different race. It was completely different than what we are used to here. We are always so used to the draft and two and three-wide -- there was a little bit of that there at the end. It is so hard to keep the cars in control that's what kept causing the wrecks. The only way to pass is to get two or three-wide and you can't keep the car under control. To be honest, they were fun to drive. I actually enjoyed driving these cars tonight more so than in the Nationwide cars last (Friday) night, but what made them fun also made them wreck a lot."

DAVE BLANEY, No. 22 Caterpillar Toyota Camry, Bill Davis Racing Finishing Position: 19th
What did you see at the end of the race?
"We were all running into each other. The guys in front of me just got slammed into the wall and I just went with it. It was everybody just beating on each other. Somebody just got too far sideways. It happened all night. These cars are just hard to hang onto. My car was just so loose after about 15 laps -- it was hard just to run by myself without spinning the thing out. Once you got in a crowd there, it was really touchy. At the end of the race -- the last few laps -- everyone is just beating and gouging for all they can get, so you are going to wreck."

TONY STEWART, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 20th
How were you feeling before and during the race?
"Today I had a real severe headache and some other flu-like symptoms. I haven't really felt great for about two weeks, but it really didn't bother me. It was just more of a nuisance. It didn't bother me at Loudon (last week) because it wasn't as physical of a race, but it got to where somewhere between last night and when we started today, it got to where I started feeling worse and worse. I felt nauseated and I was dehydrated. They ended up putting five bags of I.V. fluids in me, just to get me comfortable. I'll go home and go to the doctor and see if we can figure out what the cause of this was."

Did you think you could go the distance? What went into your decision to get out of the car tonight?
"I thought we were going to be able to (make it) for the first two runs, but once the car got a little bit loose and we had to start really sawing on the wheel, it's like it zapped the energy out of me and I started making mistakes. It was a situation where I was trying to look out for everybody involved on the race team. I wasn't doing us any favors by not being 100 percent. It was better to get out as early as we could versus sticking it out with 20 to go and expecting J.J. (Yeley) to get the thing back in the top-five. It's one of those decisions you have to make early enough, and I knew I wasn't feeling good and I wasn't feeling any better and it was getting worse as we were going. Before the race, the nurse said she was going to buy us a couple of hours and we got three hours out of it. We still had to go out there and try."

J.J. YELEY, substitute driver, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
How was your race as a substitute driver for Tony Stewart?
"For me it's a big disappointment. This Home Depot team had a really, really good race car. The Toyota power was great. We ran in the top-10 two or three times pretty easy -- passing cars. We were going to have a good finish. At the end, I chose to got to the bottom and the 55 (Michael Waltrip) got up right behind me and got me loose.

How did end up serving as a relief driver?
"I was playing in the playground with my daughter and some of the guys from the Home Depot team were looking for me. Tony (Stewart) just was feeling really, really poorly. I figured after I was sitting up on the pit box after the race started that I'd never would get in the race car because he (Tony) was so fast. He drove up in the top-five and was just maintaining there. Then he (Tony) got on the radio and said it was way, way too hot and he wasn't going to make it. I only ran half the race and it was extremely hot in that race car. There's a lot of problems with the heat in these race cars."

GREG ZIPADELLI, crew chief, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
How did J.J. Yeley perform as a substitute driver for Tony Stewart?
"J.J. (Yeley) did a good job there. We just got shuffled at the end -- it's kind of been like our year. We got in a wreck twice there. I don't know what to say. I know we had a lot better race car than what we finished tonight. We just don't seem to do anything right to turn it around. We'll go to Chicago -- a place we've won a couple of times -- and with Tony feeling better we'll be able to just turn something around there. Seems like we gain some points and then we go back and give it back. J.J. (Yeley) did a good job. The guys on the crew did a great job -- getting Tony out and J.J. in -- and making adjustments and pit stops. I'm proud of everybody's effort, I'm just not very happy with our finish."

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position: 26th
How was your race?
"It was a long night. We started out loose and worked on the FedEx Office Toyota and gradually made it better and better and we finally made it to the lead. I've got to add, the pit crew did a great job on the stops tonight. We went from loose to tight and then finally got it right. We had good power and had a good car when we got to the lead. Daytona is always a tough place to race - tonight shows that, but my hat is off to the whole FedEx team - we worked hard all night and got better and better but in the end it was out of our hands."

DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 44 UPS Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Finishing Position: 21st

MICHAEL McDOWELL, No. 00 Champion Mortgage Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Finishing Position: 25th

MICHAEL WALTRIP, No. 55 NAPA Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Finishing Position: 27th

AJ ALLMENDINGER, No. 84 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Finishing Position: 42nd

Martin Caps Strong Weekend with Top-10 Finish in Wild Race at Daytona

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- Mark Martin capped off a strong weekend at Daytona International Speedway with a 10th-place finish in Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400. The U.S. Army driver started on the outside of the front row after posting his best qualifying lap at Daytona since 1990.

Martin's No. 8 Army Chevrolet was fast during the race, running the majority of the 400-mile event inside the top five.

A barrage of cautions littered the final 20 laps of the race, hurting Martin’s chances for a top-five finish. But the Dale Earnhardt Inc. veteran was able to avoid several accidents and post a solid top-10 finish.

“That was a really strong effort by this No. 8 U.S. Army Racing Team,” said Martin. “These guys gave me a great car tonight and I’m really sorry that I wasn’t able to give them a better finish than this. We just got hung out there that one time and then there were so many accidents that we were never able to get back to the front where the car was more than capable of running.

“There at the end, it was just caution after caution and we were pretty lucky to be able to avoid all of them. I would have liked to have given this team, the soldiers and everyone at DEI a little better result. This was easily a top-five car tonight.”

Martin fell back to 15th early in the race after getting trapped leaving his pit box. However, one of the best restrictor-plate drivers in NASCAR history, Martin patiently worked his way though the draft, powering his No. 8 Chevy all the way back to second position by Lap 55 of 160.

He had his No. 8 Impala SS running as high as fifth with only four laps remaining, but lost ground just before the 10th caution on Lap 156.

With the majority of the cars on older tires and with the race having seen six cautions in the final 30 laps, Martin was able to patiently avoid several multi-car accidents and move to what was his 17th career top-10 finish at Daytona International Speedway.

Martin and the No. 8 U.S. Army/Dale Earnhardt Inc. team will return to action Saturday night (July 12) at Chicagoland Speedway. Martin has never won at Chicagoland, but boasts three top-10 finishes in seven career starts.

TEAM CHEVY DRIVERS ENDURE WILD WRECK-FILLED FINISH AT DAYTONA

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- July 5, 2008 – In what became a wreck-filled overtime run to the finish, Team Chevy drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. No. 88 National Guard/AMP Energy Impala and Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Impala SS led a combined 97 of the 160-lap Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Daytona International Speedway.

But as the race neared the end Kyle Busch pulled inside of Gordon to take the lead just as a multicar accident brought out the yellow flag. In a slow restart, Gordon was knocked out of contention and wound up finishing 30^th. “You know on a green/white/checkered its always going to get crazy in the end,” said Gordon. “We were going for the win and trying to get in the momentum and the ninety-nine got a run, and I went low to block him and he kept going low and I guess I must have come across his front bumper. I don’t know what happened.”

Earnhardt got shuffled around, but managed to hang on for an 8^th place finish. “Those last few laps I saw so much ignorance and just saw some real risk-takers out there,” said Junior. “Some of it was ignorance even though it was still amazing to watch. And we kind of got beat around there and didn’t get a top five. We should have finished in the top five today.

In all Team Chevy captured three of the top 10 finishing spots with Clint Bowyer, No. 07 Jack Daniels Impala SS finished 9^th, and Mark Martin, No. 8 U.S. Army Impala SS taking 10^th.

Kyle Busch was the eventual winner under caution, followed by Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth rounding out the top three.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series moves to Chicagoland Speedway for Round 19 next Saturday night, July 12^th.

TEAM CHEVY POST RACE NOTES & QUOTES:

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD / AMP ENERGY IMPALA SS
THE CARS LOOK LIKE YOU GUYS JUST RAN MARTINSVILLE
“Yeah, those last several laps it was rough out there. And we tried to do the best we could. Jeff (Gordon) got a great run on me and went to the outside and got the lead doing what he can to win the race. That’s what you got to do. I hate feeling obligated to my teammates too, so I don’t blame him. He had a good enough run to where I don’t blame him for going for that. But it shuffled us back a little bit and we tried to work our way back up to the front and we got back into third a couple of times. Matt (Kenseth) got a good run. I wasn’t up on my toes there watching him. And he got a good shove and got on the outside of me. The bottom wasn’t where I wanted to be so I was trying to get back to the top and we was getting turned into everybody and wrecked and it bent something in the front end. On the back straightaway Clint Bowyer turned me into the No. 29 (Harvick) real hard and it bent the front end. The steering wheel went off-center and I was just trying to hang on from there on. I thought it was going to be okay. We got it back to the top and were about fourth in line and I guess the race was over with, hell.”

IT SEEMED LIKE SEVERAL TIMES YOU GOT TURNED AROUND AND ALL BUT SPUN OUT AND HAD TO RUN DOWN ON THE APRON AGAIN ONE TIME. BUT YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO ANYTHING WRONG. YOU CAN BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AND DO EVERYTHING RIGHT AND STILL GET SHUFFLED OUT
“Yeah, well, I was happy to be able to save it a couple of times because we shouldn’t have, and I don’t think a normal man would have saved it (laughs). But I was lucky on a couple, too. But I was real happy to come home where we were. Those last few laps I saw so much ignorance and just saw some real risk-takers out there. Some of it was ignorance even though it was still amazing to watch. And we kind of got beat around there and didn’t get a top five. We should have finished in the top five today. We should have won, you know; had the best car. But there at the end though, man, I didn’t want to be racing with any of them guys out there I was around (laughs).”

YOU DIDN’T HAVE ANY FRIENDS OUT THERE, RIGHT?
“It wasn’t nothing to do with friends. I didn’t want to be near anybody that was driving. It was crazy. They were running into each other and wrecking and carrying on and Clint hits the wall and I think all that happened after the finish line. Dang! I still thought it was one to go, or something. If I’d of known it was the last lap, my mind would have been better prepared for what I saw (laughs). It was crazy.

“Thanks to the Guard and AMP and all our supporters for bringing us here this weekend and giving us an opportunity. We’ve got to better capitalize on these types of wins at these types of races than we have been. I haven’t done what I think I should be able to do on plate tracks.

“I’ve been given great equipment and I’ve just been not making the right decisions at the end. I need to change my mentality or something going into those last 20 laps or something, and just have a little luck.”

ON GOING TO CHICAGO NEXT WEEK
“Yeah it’s a night race Saturday night. So everybody will have another Sunday off and we’ll see you there.”

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT IMPALA SS
OBVIOUSLY YOU’RE NOT VERY HAPPY WITH THE FINISH
“Yeah, well I mean we had such an awesome night going you know and I’m just so excited about the way we ran, but obviously disappointed about the way we finished. I don’t know you know, might have been my fault. They were all laying back and playing kind of cat and mouse on that final restart. You know on a green/white/checkered its always going to get crazy in the end.

You know we were going for the win and trying to get in the momentum and the ninety-nine got a run, and I went low to block him and he kept going low and I guess I must have come across his front bumper. I don’t know what happened.”

YOU DON’T SEEM MAD ABOUT IT. IS IT SOMETHING THAT YOU ALMOST EXPECT WHEN WE HAVE THESE KIND OF THINGS AT THE END?
“Oh yeah. I knew it was just a matter of time before we got wrecked the way they were bump drafting and getting kind of crazy out there. But you know, I’m just excited about the way we ran and we had a great opportunity to win the race and I will have to look at the video. It might have been my fault, I don’t know.”

OBVIOUSLY A GOOD RUN FOR YOU UP UNTIL THAT POINT?
“I made a mistake there, and I let the eighteen get underneath me there and I saw the seventeen coming high and he seemed to have more cars behind him and it was a mistake you know, I should have never left the bottom. We had an awesome handling race car, a fast race car and I should have just kept that eighteen behind me.”

WERE YOU SURPRISED THAT THEY DIDN’T THROW A CAUTION?
“I didn’t even know that they didn’t throw a caution. I just got it going and then I saw on the jumbotron on the back straightaway that they were all wrecking and were up to speed and I was like, oh I guess they didn’t throw the caution. Its unfortunate because I tore my race car all up just trying to make it around there because I had four flat tires.”

WAS THE RESTART TOO SLOW IN YOUR OPINION?
“Well, you know, on restarts you watch your mirror and when guys are laying back you slow down. I was watching my mirror and I am sure that Carl was watching his mirror. Everybody was laying back and trying to get a run on that last restart and they got the jump on me and I tried to block them and I don’t know, maybe I came across his nose. It’s unfortunate because we had such a good run. I’m more mad that I let the No. 18 (KYBusch) get by me when I tried to go up there and get that high line. I should have just stayed on the bottom because my car was so good on the bottom, handled unbelievable. Steve Letarte and all the guys on this DuPont Chevrolet team called a great race. You know, things happen and I am probably more mad at myself than anything else.”

YOU SAY YOU ARE MAD AT YOURSELF FOR GIVING UP THE BOTTOM BUT IT LOOKED LIKE YOUR CAR WORKED ON THE HIGH SIDE EARLY IN THE RUN?
“My car worked good anywhere. It’s just that you go wherever the guy in front of you is not. You know we had to drive from mid-pack to the front several times and it was just awesome and I just love having a race car like that and these guys deserve a lot of credit. In February we had a great car. We came back here and didn’t qualify all that good and had a heck of a team effort tonight. Its unfortunate what happened, but at least we ran good.”

KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 REESE’S IMPALA SS
ON THE RACE
“The Reese's Chevrolet Impala SS was really good at the end of the race. The race got a little crazy at the end and I got shuffled back. I am looking forward to the Saturday night race in Chicago.”

CLINT BOWYER, NO. 07 JACK DANIELS IMPALA SS
"That was unbelievable! We were fifth or sixth when that last wreck happened and I had to use the wall to hold on to the old girl. I'm still not exactly sure where we finished but I if they score it they way we were running when they all wrecked, we should be about fifth. The Jack Daniel's Chevrolet fast all night. We were patient, stayed out of trouble and when it was time to go, we went. We had good pits stops, made good adjustments and came out of here with a good points night. Anytime you can leave Daytona with a top 10 and four fenders still on the car, you've got something to be proud of."

MARK MARTIN, NO. 8 U.S. ARMY CHEVROLET IMPALA SS
“That was a really strong effort by this No. 8 U.S. Army Racing Team. These guys gave me a great car tonight and I’m really sorry that I wasn’t able to give them a better finish than this. We just got hung out there that one time and then there were so many accidents that we were never able to get back to the front where the car was more than capable of running.

“There at the end, it was just caution after caution and we were pretty lucky to be able to avoid all of the wrecks. I would have liked to have given this team, our soldiers and everyone at DEI a little better result. This was easily a top-five car tonight.”

Nemechek Posts Best Finish of Season; Career Best for Furniture Row Racing

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- When the dust settled and the smoked cleared in Saturday night's crashfest at Daytona International Speedway, Joe Nemechek's No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet came home in one piece with an 18th-place finish.

The Sprint Cup result was not only the best of the season for Nemechek, but it was also a career best for the single-car Furniture Row Racing team.

"We have improved our finishing position in the last five races and it's uplifting to see all the hard work and dedication of this team pay off," said Joe Garone, general manager of the Denver-based Furniture Row Racing team.

For Nemechek, the race to the checkered flag was all about staying out of trouble, especially in the closing laps.

"Those last 10 laps were as wild as I have seen in a while," said Nemechek. "Cars were spinning and crashing in every direction. But we hung there and grinded it out. In a race like this, you just want to get to the checkered flag with all the fenders and tires on the car."

After starting fourth in the 160-lap, 400-mile race, Nemechek utilized his superspeedway skills as he maintained his position on the lead lap. He had some handling issues with his No. 78 Chevy, but stayed patient at the challenging 2.5-mile oval.

"Joe did everything he needed to do and got the job done," said crew chief Jay Guy. "Because it was an impound race and we only practiced in qualifying trim, it took a long time to get the car dialed in to where Joe could race it."

"We're gaining ground and making progress," added Guy. "We're certainly not where we want to be yet. But we'll take the momentum, take the points and go on to Chicago next week."

Next week's Sprint Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill will be another Saturday night event.

Race Recap: Kyle Busch Takes Sixth Win In Daytona Thriller

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- Fireworks started the Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola Saturday night. Fireworks ended the race as well, both on and off the track.

In a wild and wooly finish so typical of races at Daytona International Speedway, Kyle Busch won by a whisker over hard-charging Carl Edwards with a chain-reaction accident behind them sending up a cloud of smoke that covered the track.

The race ended in a green, white, checkered finish after a spectacular night of racing that more resembled a Saturday night short track event where rubbing fenders and banging bumpers is a rule rather than exception. The bumping continued on a restart when Edwards tapped Gordon, who was second at the time, in the rear and sent him spinning off the track.

The untimely collision sent Gordon from second to 31st in the race rundown.
Following Busch and Edwards across the finish line were Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, David Ragan, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Brian Vickers, Mark Martin and Travis Kvapil.

Kasey Kahne was 11th after racing with the leaders most of the night before a sideswipe with another driver cut a tire and forced him to make an unscheduled pit stop.

Former Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish, Jr., was next after another impressive run. Hornish kept his Dodge in contention throughout the 160-lap event before being caught up in the late race melee that scattered car parts all over the track. Michael Waltrip, Dave Blaney, Paul Menard and several other drivers were a part of the domino-type accident at the end. So was J. J. Yeley, who kept the Home Depot Toyota in contention after relief driving for Tony Stewart, who was under the weather and had to climb out of his car shortly before the halfway point.

Denny Hamlin, winner of Friday night's NASCAR Nationwide race, ran with the fastest cars before a shunt with this year's Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman ended his chances. Newman's night wound up a nightmare. He was involved in three accidents, the last one crippling his already-damaged machine.

Hamlin wound up 30th with Newman 36th.

It was Busch's sixth win of the season and he managed to do it after almost spinning out himself. A mishap earlier in the race put him way back in the pack but he made it back to the front by the end. He heads to Chicago still leading the NASCAR Sprint Cup points chase by a comfortable margin.

After a spectacular pre-race show with typical Fourth of July fireworks and the rollout of an enormous American flag, Menard led the 43-car from the pole in his DEI Chevrolet. Fan favorite Earnhardt quickly moved into second place with Johnny Sauter third.

At Lap 10, Menard still led but all eyes were on the No. 20 of Tony Stewart, who spent several hours in the care center prior to the race trying to figure out why he felt a little out of sorts. Stewart moved from 17th starting position to seventh. Sauter fell off the pace since he used a qualifying setup to make the race as did sports car ace Boris Said, who went from seventh starting position to 41st after 20 laps.

Earnhardt passed Menard for the lead on Lap 20, just before A. J. Allmendinger blew a right front tire after starting the race on a qualifying setup.

After a pit stop that included the entire field, Kyle Busch came out first, trailed by Menard, Smith, Blaney, Ragan, Kvapil, Kenseth, Vickers, Kevin Harvick and Stewart on the 24th lap.

It didn't take long for NASCAR's best drivers to produce some fireworks of their own. With Kyle Busch still leading, guys swapped positions behind him every lap. At times, the first 20 cars were running so close together, a matter of inches separated them on all sides. Earnhardt streaked to the front on the 36th lap with Busch second, Blaney third and Stewart once again storming towards the front in third place. The top 10 included Martin, Vickers, Kahne, Gordon, Kenseth and Kvapil.

Ryan Newman got a little help from Jamie McMurray exiting turn two and spun off the corner bringing out a caution on the 43rd lap.

Fortunately, Newman's Dodge made no contact with the walls and continued the race.

When racing resumed, it was Busch and Earnhardt up front with Stewart, Martin and Gordon right behind. Menard had fallen well back in the pack. By Lap 55, Earnhardt was back up front again with Martin and Gordon in tow.

Greg Biffle and Juan Pablo Montoya got together on the 70th lap coming out of turn four to bring out another caution.

Stewart, too sick to continue, was replaced by Yeley. The driver switch shoved Yeley back to 39th but he remained on the lead lap. Johnson had the lead when the race resumed and before you could blink an eye, teammate Gordon got a shove from Earnhardt and took the lead.

Point leader Busch almost lost control just a lap past the halfway point and swerved all over the track before regaining control of his Toyota. He dropped from a top five spot to 37th.

Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- KURT BUSCH (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge) Finished 4^th

YOU MUST BE SATISFIED WITH YOUR FINISH? “A great finish for our Miller Lite Dodge. It was a hard fought day. We came into the pits and changed a right front shock which you don’t normally do. We changed the left side track bar and that takes wrenches out of your tool box. You normally don’t do that. We just fought all day with making changes trying to make our car better. It was about the same setup that we had here in February and (the setup) showed up right there at the end tonight. I just need to calm down and play it cool a little bit, whether it’s a 500 or 400 mile race here.

“Our Miller Lite Dodge really was running at the end when everybody was bumping and grinding. Our car pushed well and got pushed well. It was a good day for us.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE LAST 10 LAPS OF THE RACE? “It’s like that every time here. The more I’m right in the middle of the lead pack, the more comfortable I am in the car. I feel like I learn something each time I’m in that position, especially how to survive it and get a good finish out of it. To finish with two top fives in a row is a good twist of fate for our team and we’ll try to build on it.”

ROBBY GORDON (No. 7 Dodge Charger) Finished 6^th

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE LATE PART OF THE RACE? “I know everybody is out to win this thing. I definitely think if we had some help there at the end, we had a shot at the win. For us to come back after getting shuffled out, getting stuck in the middle and still finish sixth, it shows how strong our little team is getting in this world that everybody tells us single-car teams can’t compete. We have been very fast lately. We seem to mess it up when it comes to race time, but we’re been eliminating those mistakes lately. We didn’t mess up tonight.”

KASEY KAHNE (No. 9 Budweiser Dodge Charger) Finished 7^th

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR RUN? “I was having a blast. On the last 20 laps, guys got pretty aggressive. It stinks when you get hit like we did, but we survived a real bad crash and were able to come in with a decent finish. We probably had the best race car on the entire track with a mediocre engine in it and still finished seventh. Our Dodge handled perfect all night long.”

BOBBY LABONTE (No. 43 Cheerios/Pillsbury/Cinnabon Dodge Charger) Finished 13^th

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR RUN? “It was pretty calm for a long time and looked like it was going to be a single-car or two-car wreck and then all of a sudden it got wild there at the end. It usually does. We made it through all the wrecks and looks like we got a top-15 finish.”

PATRICK CARPENTIER (No. 10 Auto Value Parts Dodge) Finished 14^th

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE RACE? “It was crazy, but fun. We fought a real loose race car early on in the race and kept working on it all night long. Our Auto Value Parts Dodge kept on getting better and better the more changes we made on it. I had a great engine, maybe the best I’ve had all year.”

CARS WERE BUMPING AND BANGING TOGETHER AND GOING SO FAST; “I’ve never see that [laughs]. It almost becomes normal but not really. It was fun. The cars are so hard to drive. They’re loose and sideways and the trick that did it for us at the end was we put some stickers on so we gained a lot of places the last couple of laps and we came through the wreck. I was right behind the 43 when we exited the wreck in Turn 1 so hopefully we’re good.”

ON THE LAST WRECK RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU; “I saw cars going everywhere. I just hammered the throttle and stayed in it (laughs).”

TERRY LABONTE (No. 45 Richard Petty Driving Experience Dodge Charger) Finished 16^th

CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE LAST 10-20 LAPS OF THE RACE? “Any time you have a restrictor-plate race with all the cars running so close together, that’s the kind of results you have. A bunch of stuff gets torn up. It’s exciting for the fans I know, but it’s not much fun when you’re the driver. Our car really didn’t drive as good as I wished it had. You can’t fix them during the race. It was too loose in traffic. We survived.”

SAM HORNISH JR. (No. 77 Penske Truck Rental Dodge) Finished 29^th

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR RUN? “We had a pretty good car all night long. I just kept getting hung out a bit the last 20 laps and I’m not sure why. I made a couple mistakes during the race by going with the wrong line of cars, but that’s what you learn about racing here at Daytona. Our car is all beat up – it’s the same car that we ran here in February – hopefully we’ll get some new skins and be a little bit quicker the next time that we race here.”

THINGS WERE GOING CRAZY AT THE END OF THE RACE. HAVE YOU EVER PARTICIPATED IN ANYTHING THAT WILD? “I don’t even know where to start. I think I finished with four flat tires. Man, it was pretty nuts out there for a little while. Everybody knows it’s coming down to the end there and it’s green-white-checker and all that stuff and just the way it turned out it was unfortunate for us. I thought we had a pretty good car. We probably should have been a top-10 car. It was what it was tonight. We brought the Penske Truck Rental Dodge home. It’s all beat up but it was another experience at Daytona, another one for the mental logbook and hopefully we’ll have some more things that I’ll know to be able to do better next time.”

RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger) Finished 36^th

ON GETTING HIT THREE TIMES TONIGHT; “Well we didn’t give up we were at the mercy of a lot of untalented drivers. Three times I was either hit or got hit by somebody that ran out of talent, that was disappointing but the guys did a good job fighting back. But in the end that’s not going to make a difference, we lost a lot of points today.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR CHASE CHANCES? “I don’t know obviously the No. 1 car is going to have a dilemma to deal with come Tuesday. But we’ll see what the points look like.”

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA (Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit Slim Pack) Finished 38^th

WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE INCIDENT WITH GREG BIFFLE? “I was on the outside of him (Biffle) and when you’re beside someone, they’re suppose to give you room. He didn’t give me any room. As far as I remember, that’s the rule here. This is my fourth or fifth time in a restrictor plate race and most of the time when somebody is on the outside, you back off and give him room. If I would have hit him from behind it would have been my fault. But if you look where he hit me, and the way he started to turn, I was outside and he never even lifted. I think that his spotter didn’t tell him that I was there or he just ignored it.”

ELLIOTT SADLER (No. 19 Best Buy/GARMIN Dodge Charger) Finished 39^th

TAKE US THROUGH THE ACCIDENT; “A right front (tire) went down. I’m alright. It’s just frustrating. We had a top five car and cut a tire. It’s disappointing. I’m proud of my Best Buy/GARMIN guys, they gave me a good race car tonight and our Dodge was fast. It’s unfortunate because we made a move back up the field after I made a mistake during a pit stop and fell back to twenty-something. It’s a shame that a good racecar is all tore up.”

FORD RACING NOTES AND QUOTES
Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway

July 6, Daytona Beach, FL--- GREG BIFFLE – No. 16 3M Ford Fusion (finished 43rd) – WHAT HAPPENED? “I was just too tight coming off the corner. The 42 had a run on the outside of me, there was nothing I could do. I tried to keep the car down, but it just kept sliding up there. But, you know, it happens. It’s racing. He was up beside me and I just pushed up there. There was nothing I could do. I figured he’d give me a little break there, but we’re racing for last position back there, and he wants to go like heck every lap.”

ARE YOU DONE FOR THE NIGHT? “It looks pretty bad, but we’ll have to wait and see.”

DAVID GILLILAND – No. 38 freecreditreport.com Ford Fusion (finished 40th) – “It felt like we had a tire going down. It got real loose down in one and two on that last lap, and then going into three, once I got in there I just had no right-rear to lean on and I was just chasing it the whole time. Unfortunately, Ryan Newman was out there and he got tangled up in it, and so did some other people. So, it’s just kind of an unfortunate day. Our freecreditreport.com Ford Fusion was very, very fast. We knew we had a fast car in practice. I hate to see our day end early like this.”

YOU FINISHED SECOND AT SONOMA, AND WERE RUNNING AS HIGH AS SECOND TONIGHT. YOU’RE SHOWING HOW COMPETITIVE THIS TEAM CAN BE. “Absolutely. Like I said, I felt like we ran something over there and it felt like we had a tire going down. It’s too bad, but definitely we were competitive, we were running up front, we had a strong car, and overall, not a bad showing for Yates Racing.”

BORIS SAID – No. 60 No Fear/Advance Auto Parts Ford Fusion (finished 35th) – BEFORE THE RACE, YOU SAID THAT YOU NEEDED ABOUT THREE CAUTIONS TO GET THE CAR TO BE WHERE YOU NEEDED IT TO BE. IT LOOKED LIKE YOUR PLAN WAS WORKING. “Yeah. At the drivers’ meeting they said you couldn’t change springs on pit road, and we really needed to change out left-front spring. We were struggling all night. We finally got it really good when we running alone, but at the end, when we were in traffic, it was just way too loose. So, I misjudged it. When we were in traffic it was just too loose, and then somebody hit me in the right rear there at the end, so that’s too bad. But, still, we ran respectable at times, so I’m pretty happy.” YOU MUST HAVE A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP WITH THIS TRACK. YOU RUN WELL AND HAVE BAD LUCK. “I love it. There’s nothing I hate Daytona. I wish we came here every week.”

DAVID RAGAN – No. 6 AAA Insurance Ford Fusion (finished 5th) – OTHER DRIVERS WORKED WITH YOU TONIGHT. “I feel like we had good speed, and it was to their benefit to work with us, whether they wanted to or not. It was good. I made a few mistakes out there where I think we could’ve been up there in the top two or three. It’s shame we had to come back down pit road there with three or four cautions to go, and it put us back in the back, but it was fun coming back to the front and we had a good time. But, we just got to keep working on it, and that was a good rebound from last week.” WERE YOU CLOSE TO ANY OF THOSE WRECKS? “I think I was in a lot of it most all day. We’ve got to apologize to Kevin Harvick, on one of those restarts I really pushed him hard and pushed him there on the outside. I don’t think he liked it too much, but other than that, we had a fast car and it was rtime to make some moves. I think everybody saw we had a fast car, whether they wanted to stick with us or not, I think they used it to their benefit to stick with us. There on the last lap, it’s crazy here at Daytona because everybody’s slipping and sliding on old tires. The 7 had a good run on the bottom and we were kind of the meat in the sandwich in the middle, taking the white flag. I was able to stay in the throttle and not spin out, and just have a solid run. It’s always fun to run up front. We would’ve liked to have a shot to win it, but it was close. It was a good night.” PLUS, IT WAS A GOOD POINTS NIGHT AT AN IMPORTANT TIME. “Yeah, and that just makes us even hate last week’s finish even more. Real disappointing. This is what it’s going to take to make the choice, and to get out of Daytona with a good finish, we’ve just got to look at some of the next few races and stay focused on the big picture.”

CARL EDWARDS and MATT KENSETH press conference

MATT KENSETH – No. 17 R & L Carriers Ford Fusion (finished 3rd) – “It was crazy. You never know what’s going to happen on one of those green-white-checkers. You’re pretty sure at a plate race with a green-white-checkered there’s going to be wreck, and you hope that you’re not in it, basically. The restart was really odd. Kyle went about 20 car lengths late and everybody was just running into each other like crazy. I’ve never been hit so hard and hit people so hard before they ever threw a green. So, that sort of got it started and then I guess Kyle must’ve had a little run, and Jeff got spun out. And then down the back, I was trying to push Carl because we had such a good restart and Kurt was behind me pushing me like crazy, but he was trying to look different directions on Kyle, and Kyle was blocking like crazy and he was all over the straightaway. I was scared to hit him; I thought he was going to spin out. And finally I did give him a little shove and he got sideways and Kyle went up to block him and got sideways, and I was right in the middle of it and was going to wreck, so I had to get out of the gas. If Kyle could’ve gotten straight and if we could’ve gotten a farther-back run on Kyle, I think we both could’ve gone by him, and maybe race for the win, but we couldn’t quite get that figured out exactly right. So, anyway, happy with the finish. I think that’s the best I ever finished at Daytona. The guys made great adjustments, and we were pretty competitive, so it feels good.

CARL EDWARDS – No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion (finished 2nd) – “I don’t know exactly what the caution was for was it a wreck in turn one? Was that it? Man, I’d have given anything to be able to run at least down to the end of the back straightaway, but that’s the way it went and Kyle did a great job. They were real fast. That was a little nerve-wracking there, before they announced the winner, but I don’t know what to tell you. Second place is second place. I really wanted to win. Matt did a great job helping me. That was very cool.”

KENSETH – KYLE BUSCH HAS WON SIX TIMES THIS YEAR. WHAT ARE YOUR IMPRESSIONS OF HIM AS A DRIVER, AND WHY IS HE SO GOOD? “I think he’s the same driver he’s been the last couple of years. First of all, I know you can only run as fast as your equipment will carry you. So, obviously, he’s got good equipment. I think a lot of times you’ll get together with somebody and have good chemistry and can figure this stuff out better than maybe you can with somebody else. And, obviously, he’s been able to hit it off with his team really good over there, and obviously they got good stuff. And, he’s just been pretty much on fire, so he’s been having an exceptional year, that’s for sure.”

EDWARDS – WHEN DID YOU KNOW FOR SURE THAT YOU FINISHED SECOND? “I wasn’t sure until we were going down the back straightaway. Jason Hedlesky had told me, and said, ‘The 18 to Victory Lane.’ I was pretty sure, though, when we were running, because I saw the yellow light come on, right when I was going by it, and I was just getting a run up on his door, so I thought that I was probably second.”

EDWARDS – KYLE BUSCH OBVIOUSLY HAS HAD EVERYTHING GO RIGHT FOR HIM THIS YEAR. HE’S ON A GOOD TEAM WITH A SOLID CAR. ARE YOU CONFIDENT THAT YOU CAN COMPETE WITH HIM DURING THE CHASE? “Yeah, I feel great about how competitive we are. If we had not blown up at Atlanta, and if pit strategy had worked differently at Sonoma, and if we’d had gone another 200 yards here tonight, we might have a lot more wins. And that’s just how racing goes. You know, Kyle’s got the trophies and I’ve got all the respect in the world for him, but once the Chase starts, everybody gets to almost start all over again. He’s getting a little bit of a headstart with all of these wins on the bonus points, but I feel very good about our team, all of them. We have the potential to be very good in the Chase.”

KENSETH – YOU HAVE NOT FARED WELL IN THE DAYTONA 500. WHY DO YOU HAVE MORE SUCCESS IN THIS RACE? “I don’t know. It’s hard for me to remember back every race. We were running, I think, third or fourth, and had a great car in the 500, a way better car than what we had tonight, and got wrecked. I couldn’t do anything about it, I was beside somebody and they ran me in the wall, so I couldn’t really do anything about that. I guess that’s the last one I can remember. So, I don’t know that it really matters what time of year it is or what race, I think it’s just more circumstances than anything.

EDWARDS – YOU WERE HANGING IN THE BACK EARLY IN THE RACE. WAS THAT INTENTIONAL? “That’s a good question. At first I was thinking it was intentional, and then I just couldn’t go any faster. We really had some things that weren’t right on our car. It was really hard to drive. So, I just kind of hung back there a little bit until we got it fixed, and Bob [Osborne, crew chief] really did a great job, and we actually did some stuff with the front end and worked on some things. So, it worked out. But, I couldn’t drive like that for 400 miles, the way the car was, so I just figured I would hang around instead of wrecking everyone.” YOU STAYED OUT AND THEN CAME IN AFTER EVERYBODY ELSE HAD PITTED WITH ABOUT 45 LAPS TO GO. WHAT WAS THE STRATEGY? “That was a fuel-mileage thing. Bob thought we could make it to the end with a caution, maybe, and maybe even without a caution. So, we stayed out and led one lap and thought we’d gamble on fuel, which is very cool of Bob to do. We are getting closer to the Chase, and we do feel pretty comfortable with our position in the points, so it was cool to see Bob do some gambling. We play it very safe, and that’s what we were doing there.” WHAT HURTS MORE: NOT WINNING OR THE 20-POINT DIFFERENCE? “That’s what hurts the most – that’s what hurt the most at Atlanta and that’s what hurts the most tonight. You’re so close, especially with one guy – Kyle’s winning all these races, he’s really setting himself up for a great start to the Chase. If he wins one or two more, he’s almost got a freebie there if he blows an engine or has a bad race or something. They’re doing it right and that’s going to be hard for the rest of us. Those points, we’re going to have to make up. That’s just the way it is.” ON THE INCIDENT WITH JEFF GORDON. “On the Jeff Gordon thing, he was coming down and he was doing the best he could, I think, to try to get in front of me, and he was up against my fender. I thought that he would turn right at any moment, but that’s all that happened there. I don’t think he knew that I was inside of him.”